The safety of science students is shared among the following people
Science Teacher - obvious enough, the science teacher is in direct control of the room and of planning all activities. If safety is a prominent forethought the chance for accidents is greatly reduced. It is also the teachers responsibility to make sure that the lab is organized and the activities structure in such a way as force safe practices. If safety is modeled in every action, students will be more likely to behave safely. In the words of Cindy Johnson, Williamstown High School, Williamstown, N.J.:
Safety begins with the teacher. Safety rules only work if the teacher has created a safe environment.
1. Replace worn equipment.
2. Organize materials to avoid clutter on lab benches.
3. Arrange classroom to provide a view of all lab stations.
4. Be certain that students have a clear picture of the activity before they begin.
5. Whenever possible, limit the number of students working together to 2 or 3.
Science Department head - As the supervisor for all science teachers, and playing a role in the selection of staff, it is this persons ressponsibilty to help ensure that all teachers value safety in the classroom and have acceptable, similar or identical guidlines in place as a baseline. Additionally this person should be checking in on teacerhs, especially new ones to assure that students are in fact safe. It also their responsibility to disperse proper safety guidelines to all teachers these guidelines should be approved by the entire administration.
Principle - As the main localized administrator the principle should be in regular contact with the department head regarding safety concerns. additionally the principle should make efforts to do teacher. observations on lab days -after all a student is much more likely to learn with all eyes and limbs intact.
Superintendent - As the 'highest official' in the district this person must ultimately answer to any legal issues. As such they should be in contact with all principles and other subordinates to be sure that safety is more than a word in their schools.
Parents - It is every parents responsibility to be informed about the lives of there kids both in and out of school. With this in mind parents should reinforce safety as a daily thing with there students and notifiy the classroom teacher of any concerns about their child
The student - The student should remember that science is about well science. not showing off. Ultimatly the student has control of his/her own actions.
Although we all want to think that nothing will ever go wrong in our classrooms, we should be aware of the legal ramifications and responsibilities relating to negligence. Most of these are common sense and summarized above, but are below in there entirety due to there legal nature.
DUTY OF INSTRUCTION
includes adequateinstruction before a laboratory activity (preferablyin writing) that:
•Is accurate; is appropriate to the situation,setting, and maturity of the audience; andaddresses reasonably foreseeable dangers.
•Identifies and clarifies any specific riskinvolved, explains proper procedures/tech-niques to be used, and presents commentsconcerning appropriate/inappropriate con-duct in the lab.
Instruction must follow professional and dis-trict guidelines.Teachers who set bad examples by not follow-ing proper laboratory procedures may be sued ifinjury results from students following theteacher’s bad examples.
DUTY OF SUPERVISION
includes adequatesupervision as defined by professional, legal, anddistrict guidelines to ensure students behave prop-erly in light of any foreseeable dangers. Points toremember:
•Misbehavior of any type must not be tolerat-ed.•Failure to act or improper action is groundsfor liability.•The greater the degree of danger, the higherthe level of supervision should be.•The younger the age of students or thegreater the degree of inclusion of specialpopulation students, the greater the level ofsupervision should be.•Students must never be left unattended,except in an emergency where the potentialharm is greater than the perceived risk tostudents. Even then, risk should be minimized or responsibility transferred to anotherauthorized person if the situation allows.
DUTY OF MAINTENANCE
includes ensuring a safe environment for students and teachers. Thisrequires that the teacher:
•Never use defective equipment for any rea-son.•File written reports for maintenance/correc-tion of hazardous conditions or defectiveequipment with responsible administrators.•Establish regular inspection schedules andprocedures for checking safety and first-aidequipment.•Follow all safety guidelines concerning prop-er labeling, storage, and disposal of chemi-cals.
By keeping files of all hazard notifications andmaintenance inspections, teacher liability in theeventof an accident is minimized in cases whereno corrective actions were subsequently made.
All administrators should be on the same page regarding safety responsibilities and legal obligations regarding safety in there schools.
You are NOT alone in the enforcment of safety in school (and in the students life). Other officials, students and their families should be involved, just to name a few
There are a variety of unique and effective ways to keep your classroom safe. Do not simply hand out the rules and forget about safety. Constantly monitor and adjust.
The safety of science students is shared among the following people
Safety begins with the teacher. Safety rules only work if the teacher has created a safe environment.
1. Replace worn equipment.
2. Organize materials to avoid clutter on lab benches.
3. Arrange classroom to provide a view of all lab stations.
4. Be certain that students have a clear picture of the activity before they begin.
5. Whenever possible, limit the number of students working together to 2 or 3.
Although we all want to think that nothing will ever go wrong in our classrooms, we should be aware of the legal ramifications and responsibilities relating to negligence. Most of these are common sense and summarized above, but are below in there entirety due to there legal nature.
DUTY OF INSTRUCTION
includes adequateinstruction before a laboratory activity (preferablyin writing) that:
•Is accurate; is appropriate to the situation,setting, and maturity of the audience; andaddresses reasonably foreseeable dangers.
•Identifies and clarifies any specific riskinvolved, explains proper procedures/tech-niques to be used, and presents commentsconcerning appropriate/inappropriate con-duct in the lab.
Instruction must follow professional and dis-trict guidelines.Teachers who set bad examples by not follow-ing proper laboratory procedures may be sued ifinjury results from students following theteacher’s bad examples.
DUTY OF SUPERVISION
includes adequatesupervision as defined by professional, legal, anddistrict guidelines to ensure students behave prop-erly in light of any foreseeable dangers. Points toremember:
•Misbehavior of any type must not be tolerat-ed.•Failure to act or improper action is groundsfor liability.•The greater the degree of danger, the higherthe level of supervision should be.•The younger the age of students or thegreater the degree of inclusion of specialpopulation students, the greater the level ofsupervision should be.•Students must never be left unattended,except in an emergency where the potentialharm is greater than the perceived risk tostudents. Even then, risk should be minimized or responsibility transferred to anotherauthorized person if the situation allows.
DUTY OF MAINTENANCE
includes ensuring a safe environment for students and teachers. Thisrequires that the teacher:
•Never use defective equipment for any rea-son.•File written reports for maintenance/correc-tion of hazardous conditions or defectiveequipment with responsible administrators.•Establish regular inspection schedules andprocedures for checking safety and first-aidequipment.•Follow all safety guidelines concerning prop-er labeling, storage, and disposal of chemi-cals.
By keeping files of all hazard notifications andmaintenance inspections, teacher liability in theeventof an accident is minimized in cases whereno corrective actions were subsequently made.
Useful Links
Science Safety GuidelinesTeacher Safety Tips
Example Non Flinn Contract
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